Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Sloan Gibson has just arrived at the Phoenix VA Health Care System and will address the media at 12:30 p.m. to provide updates on what his office is doing in regards to the ongoing wait list scandal. Nearly 1,700 Arizona veterans were deliberately left off a patient-care wait list.

Gibson on Wednesday said his agency had contacted nearly all of the veterans left off the list.

Gibson, who arrived at the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center in Phoenix shortly after 10 a.m., plans to address the issue, and he has said the department has reached out to every veteran identified in a VA inspector-general report "to discuss individual medical needs and immediately begin scheduling appointments."

The report, released last week, found 1,700 Arizona vets who were seeking first-time appointments with primary-care doctors were excluded from the VA's electronic waiting list. The inquiry confirmed "inappropriate" and "convoluted" scheduling practices at the Phoenix VA and systemically across the United States.The inspector general said the inaccurate reports on patient access led to bonuses and salary increases.

The VA announced Wednesday that after accounting for duplicates and veterans who declined to provide contact information, the government had called 1,586 veterans as of Friday. Those who could not be reached were sent letters. It's unknown if any of these veterans have died.

The VA said that about 725 veterans of those identified have requested an appointment within 30 days.

"No veteran should have to wait for the quality health care they have earned and deserve," said Gibson, who took over the department when Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned over the scandal on Friday. "The inspector general confirmed we have real issues when it comes to patient scheduling and access, and we have moved immediately to address those issues in Phoenix.

"Getting this right is our top priority, and taking care of the veterans in Phoenix is a good place to start. The department will also continue reaching out to veterans nationwide to accelerate their access to care, and that is the message I intend to deliver in Phoenix and across the country."

Gibson announced the VA will schedule all veterans requesting care at the Phoenix VA Health Care System. If the Phoenix VA is not able to promptly provide care using VA providers, it will identify providers in the community through the non-VA care program.

During his visit to the Phoenix VA hospital today, Gibson will discuss the problems that have occurred and address recommendations outlined in the recent inspector general's report. He also plans to meet with hospital staff, members of Arizona's congressional delegation and veterans service organizations.

Robert Rossi of Phoenix said his father, Robert Sr., was called last Thursday and was scheduled to be seen yesterday by a primary-care VA doctor. Rossi said that in March, his father was told it would take up to six months to be seen.

"It went better than expected," Rossi Jr. said. "I thought we would be waiting for a long time. But our appointment was for 8 a.m., and we were in the back (patient area) by 10 to 15 minutes tops."

In other developments:

• The American Legion will send a team to Phoenix next week to set up a "crisis command center" to help those affected by the health-care scandal. The organization will also host a second town hall at 7 p.m. Monday at the American Legion Post 1, 364 N. 7th Ave. in Phoenix. The center will open at noon the next day at the post and operate until June 13.

The American Legion was one of the first organizations to call for the resignation of Shinseki, who quit amid bipartisan outrage that veterans purposely were left off wait lists for appointments and allegations of misconduct at more than 40 VA facilities nationwide.

"We want to make clear that even though Secretary Shinseki resigned, this is not over," said John Raughter, an American Legion spokesman. "We never saw this as an end goal, it's just the beginning. The American Legion will continue to render assistance and monitor the situation until it is resolved."

Verna Jones, director of the Legion's Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Division in Washington, said the Legion's crisis center will have a "triage team" to identify problems reported by those who visit the center, then direct those patients to appropriate stations on-site for benefits claims, enrollment in VA health care and bereavement counseling.

The claims station will assist those who may be eligible to file benefits claims with VA that are associated with their lack of medical care.

There also will be grief counselors to assist family members of veterans who have died.

• The city of Phoenix and Maricopa Integrated Health System, in a letter to acting Phoenix VA Director Steve Young, have offered the Maricopa Medical Center as a venue to see veterans waiting for service.

Mayor Greg Stanton has offered Phoenix community centers or libraries.